This is a summary for all Pi Mu Epsilon Chapters of the Meeting of the National Council of Pi Mu Epsilon, Inc., January 7th 2009, in Washington.

This is a summary for all Pi Mu Epsilon Chapters of the meeting of the National Council of Pi Mu Epsilon, Inc., January 7, 2009.

Necrology: Past Secretary-Treasurer Robert Woodside died on December 18, 2008.  His predecessor, Richard Good, died on November 24, 2008.

New Chapters:

• Willamette University (Oregon Zeta #330).  This Chapter will be installed by President David Sutherland in spring 2009.
• Olivet Nazarene University (Illinois Mu #331).  This Chapter was installed by Secretary-Treasurer Leo Schneider on October 3, 2008.
• University of San Francisco (California Rho #332).  This Chapter will be installed by Councillor Kendra Kilpatrick in spring 2009.
• College of St. Elizabeth (New Jersey Mu #333).  This Chapter will be installed by Past-President Joan Weiss in spring 2009.
• Ramapo College (New Jersey Nu #334).  This Chapter will be installed by Past-President Joan Weiss in spring 2009.   

Lectureships:

Grants for Councillors to visit Chapters were approved at our August meeting for these Chapters:

• Indiana Epsilon Chapter at St Mary’s College.  Secretary-Treasurer Leo Schneider spent October 1 and 2 with this Chapter.
• Pennsylvania Lambda Chapter at Clarion University.  Councillor Jacqueline Jensen spent October 28 with this Chapter.
• Massachusetts Eta Chapter at Fitchburg State College.  Journal Editor Brigitte Servatius spent October 10 with this Chapter.
•  Florida Iota Chapter at the University of Tampa.  President Elect Eve Torrence will be visiting this Chapter in March 2009.

Grants for Councillors to visit Chapters approved at this meeting were:

• Michigan Delta Chapter at Hope College.  Webmaster Paul Fishback will visit the college this spring.
• Oregon Delta Chapter at Western Oregon University.  Councillor Kendra Killpatrick will visit the University this spring.
• Texas Pi Chapter at Southwestern University.  President David Sutherland will visit the University this spring.

Arrangements for August 5-8, 2009 Pi Mu Epsilon Conference in Portland, Oregon:

• The MAA, as a part of its MathFest, will furnish projectors for all student talks with no cost to Pi Mu Epsilon.
• Speaker and Delegate applications will be put on the www.pme-math.org web site by March 1.  Copies of the applications will go to Councillor Angela Spalsbury who is in charge of arranging and printing the student program and to Secretary-Treasurer Leo Schneider who will reimburse speakers and delegates for their transportation.
• Pi Mu Epsilon tee shirts will be distributed to Speakers and Delegates at Wednesday afternoon’s Student Reception.
• Persi Diaconis from Stanford University will give the Frame Lecture on Friday evening.  His topic will be the mathematics of perfect card shuffles.
• President-Elect Eve Torrence will be in charge of the judging.  There will be at least ten $150 cash prizes for the best papers.  In addition to the seven that have been underwritten by a grant from the American Mathematical Society for the past several years, there will be two additional prizes underwritten by a new grant from the American Statistical Society.  The paper ranked in the top ten that is judged to represent the best student research will receive its prize from the Council for Undergraduate Research.  In addition to these ten prizes, there may also be $150 prizes for top papers in the areas of applied mathematics furnished by the SIAM, of environmental mathematics furnished by SIGMAA-EM, and of mathematical biology furnished by Bio-SIGMAA.  No student can receive two prizes.
• Student prizes will be awarded at the Pi Mu Epsilon Banquet Friday evening.  Pi Mu Epsilon students will register for MathFest in a special category that includes the subsidized cost of a Banquet ticket.
• There will be a breakfast for Pi Mu Epsilon faculty advisors early Thursday morning.  It will not be listed in the MathFest Program.  Advisors will get their invitation by email from the Secretary-Treasurer and receive the location and time when they RSVP. 

Pi Mu Epsilon Journal. 

• The Journal is receiving a larger number of articles for publication than ever before, and is looking for additional volunteers to referee submissions. 
• The Council authorized a $50 prize for the mathematical sonnet contest announced in the fall issue.  Sonnet submissions must be received by February 28, 2009, and in addition to the cash prize, the sonnet will be published in the spring 2009 issue. 
• The Problem Section of the Journal is also receiving many more submissions of problems than it can publish.  The on-line version of the questions is very popular, and many high school and college mathematics clubs and students are submitting solutions.  Since the Journal is very inexpensive, Pi Mu Epsilon may investigate how to market the Journal to high school libraries.
• Storage of paper issues of the Journal back to its beginnings in 1949 has become a burden.  Pi Mu Epsilon may archive copies via JStor.

Pi Mu Epsilon’s On-Line Newsletter.  Councillor Jackie Jensen hopes to have our new on-line newsletter on our web site some time this spring.

Finances.  Non-profit organizations should have unencumbered funds as least equaling their average annual expenses.  By this criterion, Pi Mu Epsilon is healthy financially.

Long term planning.  The following are significant events in the life of Pi Mu Epsilon:

• 100th Anniversary in 2014 of the Founding of Pi Mu Epsilon.  The MAA is investigating the possibility of holding MathFest 2014 in Syracuse in honor of the founding of Pi Mu Epsilon at Syracuse University in 1914.  Pi Mu Epsilon will distribute buttons advertising our 100th anniversary at the meetings preceding the 2014 conference.
• 60th Anniversary in 2012 of Pi Mu Epsilon’s Summer Conference for Student Speakers.  Pi Mu Epsilon is considering ways to celebrate this occasion.
• 60th Anniversary in 2009 of the Pi Mu Epsilon Journal.

American Regions Mathematics League.  Pi Mu Epsilon will become a sponsor for 2009.

The complete and official minutes of this meeting (all 16 or so pages) will be available from the Pi Mu Epsilon Secretary-Treasurer after they are approved at the August 2009 meeting of the Pi Mu Epsilon Council in Portland, Oregon.

Leo J. Schneider, Secretary-Treasurer, Pi Mu Epsilon, Inc.